Open Source and FPGA Maker Board for Networking

Open Source and FPGA Maker Board for Networking Private Island Networks Inc. is pleased to announce that we will sponsor and support a limited number of university efforts this upcoming academic year (2025/2026) for students that desire to work with the Private Island ® open source networking stack in the areas of network security, privacy, and machine learning. We believe that this open source networking project and the Betsy™ maker board are ideal for university senior projects, master theses, advanced high school cybersecurity clubs, research, and the like. If you're interested in having your project considered for sponsorship, then please fill out the form at the bottom of this page or send us an email to get started. Note that all projects must have the support of a professor / teacher. Betsy Maker Board (prototype) Project Overview The Private Island open source Verilog stack for Betsy utilizes an Altera Cyclone 10 LP FPGA in order to build an open, trustworthy, and extensible sytstem for packet processing, security, machine learning, control, and other applications. The open architecture supports numerous, highly parallel functions implemented at a Gigabit Ethernet line rate (125 MHz x 8-bit). Core functionality includes packet filtering, mirroring, data collection, and multi-port switching. The Betsy Maker board supports Ethernet connectivity via two on-board Gigabit Ethernet PHYs via RGMII and supports a third port or other peripheral via a daughter card connector. The core open source project is intended to be a template for which more complex and custom projects can be built. The use of an FPGA with an open source Verilog code base for networking is in stark contrast to off-the-shelf SoC implementations, which require developers & users to make assumptions about multiple opaque hardware & firmware layers and closed source being free of bugs, back doors, malware, and resident spies. Private Island / Betsy Block Diagram Status We are continuing to develop & refine Private Island and support it for education because we believe that it is necessary to re-think approaches to utilizing networks in an open, secure, transparent, and trustworthy manner. The Verilog source and Quartus project files are actively being uploaded to the Private Island Git repo. A first revision of the Betsy Maker Board is available now in limited quantities. A production model for general sale should be available early in 2026. A hardware reference manual for the maker board is in development and will be posted to this site soon. Potential (Research) Projects Private Island is an open source project with unlimited potential, so you're very much encouraged to think out of the box. Below is a listing of some potential project areas, but please feel free to propose your own ideas. Neural Network for Machine Learning Applications: Utilizing FPGA DSP blocks and internal and external processing nodes, create an embedded, real-time neural network that can be used to identify abnormal network activity that may be caused by intrusions or malicious actors from within. Machine Learning in the Cloud: Use the FPGA to detect complex patterns and collect meta data that can then be streamed to a trusted machine learning engine either in the cloud or resident on the local network for real-time AI processing. Daughter Board Design: Use KiCad to design a Betsy daughter board and participate in its manufacture using our company's in-house SMT line. Network Visualization: The FPGA can be used to create complex packet filters for capturing various data patterns. Stream the collected (meta) data in real-time to a Web browser and make use of Javascript visualization libraries (e.g, D3) for new unique, meaningful visualizations of network patterns and behavior. Threat Modeling and Generation: We are concerned about backdoors being introduced into network nodes. Conceptualize how backdoors can be created and discovered. Make use of the FPGA to generate random network patterns, protocols, and timings to probe wired and wireless interfaces for backdoors and vulnerabilities. Also, potentially create and test new backdoors. Secure Communication: Create and test novel, secure communication channels between FPGA-based endpoints using non-traditional key exchanges and (quantum proof) hardware-based cryptographic algorithms. Develop a voice capable daughter board for Betsy that encrypts voice calls. Identify and Thwart Undesirable Network Activty: This could be as straightforward as placing a Betsy between an Ethernet switch & a Windows PC and limiting unrecognized or unwanted activity between the PC and the network (e.g, preventing upgrades or network activity while a PC is idle). Test, Test benches, Library Integration, and Documentation: As with any open source project, there is no shortage of tasks that need to be accomplished. Many of these tasks would be perfect for a newly formed cybersecurity or machine learning club. Project Related Documentation share subscribe to mailing list: